Close Encounters
by Shun'u
Summary: Kurosaki Ichigo thought he had it rough what with seeing ghosts & dealing with the stigma of his orange hair. But he was wrong. Rough couldn't even begin to describe the complications of his life after a black swallowtail butterfly entered it.
1. Daily Routine

Disclaimer: Bleach is a manga created by Kubo Tite, published in Shonen Jump, and Viz Comics. This fanfic is all me though.: (Is this an Ichigo expression or what?)

**Close Encounters**

**A Bleach Fanfiction**

By: Shun'u

* * *

**I: Daily Routine**

At one time in her life solitude had been a comfortable companion. There, always, soft and quiet so as to be unnoticeable unless someone were to point it out. Rukia wondered at what point in her life her calm existence had been discarded. Or was that stripped away? To tell the truth, Rukia knew full well when everything had changed. It was the day she met that bright burning soul: Kurosaki Ichigo, that orange haired, violent tempered, ever frowning, sensitive young man with the ancient spirit.

Rukia kicked a harmless pebble on the sidewalk. Her smooth forehead creased in fruitless concentration. "I don't get it."

"Don't get what?" a gruff voice asked.

Jumping a solid foot into the air, Rukia slapped a slender hand over her lips to contain what would have been an impressive scream. Her eyes watered with the effort of holding in her fright, and this led to embarrassment, which consequently sparked the little shinigami's temper.

"Ichigo! Don't sneak up on me like that!" she scolded.

Ichigo frowned, which is to say that his expression did not change in the slightest from the norm, "I didn't sneak up on you. Didn't you hear me call?"

Rukia blinked. "Um," she tilted her head slightly to the right in an unconscious gesture, "no, you did?" When Ichigo's frown deepened, Rukia held up a hand to stop the impending lecture. "Never mind. I guess I was lost in thought."

Ichigo swung his school bag over his right shoulder. "Yeah, looked like it." Habit had him lessening his strides to keep even with her much shorter stature.

A comfortable silence settled over them as they made their way back to the Kurosaki Clinic; above the clinic was the Kurosaki home where he lived with his two sisters and father. Rukia had been living with him for months now, close to three, and he had become used to her presence in his life. Ichigo found that as the days and weeks passed it was becoming more difficult to remember a time in his life when she was not there. It wasn't a feeling of dependency or need so much as a simple expectation that when he woke up she would be there to greet the day with, and when he went to sleep she would be the last person he saw. Was it because of the strange circumstances that had brought them together, that he felt this way? Ichigo was not quite sure, and he was uncomfortable delving any deeper into his thoughts on this matter. He only knew that Rukia had somehow found a niche in his life that had not existed before, and veered away from speculation on what life would be like once she left.

"Ichigo."

"Hm?" He looked sideways at her and found that he had to tilt his head down just a little bit more than he remembered having to do in the past. Had he grown taller or had she shrunk?

"What is it?"

She held up the ever present cell phone. "We have an assignment."

It took him a moment to process the low beeping sound emanating from her phone.

"Great," he grumbled darkly. "I was looking forward to taking a nap today. Well, where to?"

Rukia held up her cell and squinted to see the dots indicating the presence of Hollows beneath the late afternoon sun. Ichigo peered over her shoulder, impatient to finish his unwanted task so that he could go home and rest.

"I think it's…" Rukia angled the screen a bit more to reduce the glare, "straight ahead. And it's approaching fast!"

"Fast," Ichigo echoed. He pointed in front of them towards a growing cloud of dust. "Tell me something I don't know. That thing's huge."

"Hurry up and take a soul pill!" Rukia scolded as she charged towards the Hollow emerging out of the dust cloud. "We don't have time to dilly dally."

Her words made Ichigo stumble slightly, "'Dilly dally'?" He repeated. "Just what have you been reading _now_?"

Rukia gave him a cutting glance. "Don't mind that now; we have a Hollow to discharge. Focus on your task."

"_Feed me! Feed me with your souls!_"

Ichigo and Rukia came to a skidding halt twenty feet away from the tremendous Hollow. The creature was larger than anything they had ever seen, with the only exception being Menos Grande. Its girth was the width of the entire street, and its height had it looming over the surrounding buildings. People were screaming in the street and scurrying for shelter. A couple had already fallen victim to the Hollow's rampage. They lay where they fell with limbs angled awkwardly and blood pooling beneath their still bodies. Rukia moved to them as Ichigo swallowed the soul pill and let his body fall to the ground. Now in full soul reaper dress, he drew the zanpaku-to from its sheath.

"All right, bastard, show me what you've got!"

The Hollow hissed and swiped at Ichigo with a limb that was thicker around the forearm than four of the lean teenager put together. Ichigo barely dodged the swipe and countered by leaping up and striking downwards with his zanpaku-to. His sword was true and cleaved one forearm from the Hollow, causing it shriek and thrash. Rukia barely avoided being crushed by its feet as she ran towards the fallen victims.

"Damn it, woman, watch where you're going!" Ichigo yelled.

"You fool!" Rukia returned, "Keep your eyes on your enemy."

No sooner had she said this than Ichigo was flung into the air with his breath taken away from the impact of the Hollow's remaining arm in his midsection.

"Oomph!"

"Ichigo! Watch out!" Rukia yelled.

The Hollow roared, losing whatever composure it had had and began batting at Ichigo without pause. The orange haired young man dodged to the best of his capacity, but could not avoid every swing of the Hollow's remaining arm. Ichigo scrounged for cover behind a parked van when the Hollow put too much weight behind his attack and fell forward. Looking around for a means of turning the tide of this battle to his favor, Ichigo caught Rukia out of the corner of his eye circling around the injured civilians towards him. He lost his temper seeing her almost get trampled beneath the blindly raging Hollow.

Temper rising, he yelled, "What the hell do you think you're doing, woman!"

"Helping you, ingrate!" Rukia yelled back with just as much fire. Stern dark eyes the color of midnight glared at him. Ichigo was momentarily taken aback. Then he remembered why he was yelling at her in the first place.

"I don't need any help," Ichigo proclaimed arrogantly. "Stay inside and out of my way."

He watched as Rukia sputtered and hissed angrily. Her actions combined with her overall petite appearance made Ichigo think of an angry kitten, though he would never say such a thing out loud. He rather enjoyed living too much to risk her fury.

"Foolish boy, don't think that you know everything there is to know about being a Soul Reaper yet," Rukia said. "There are other things besides just swinging your zanpaku-to around like a crazed maniac."

Ichigo scowled, slightly offended by the scorn in her voice. "Then tell me what the hell you want me to do and get inside. I can't concentrate on the fight if I have to think about your safety, damn it."

The moment he finished speaking Ichigo wanted to take back his words. He felt an embarrassed flush creeping up his neck and swallowed hard as he focused on keeping it down to a minimal level. Rukia for her part tilted her head again in that innocent way she had when she was trying to figure out something new and strange about humans and how they lived. Her eyes were trained on him and yet unfocused as she picked away at this new puzzle he had inadvertently presented to her. Ichigo hoped she would have the same difficulty with this as she normally did with opening food packages. The Hollow chose that moment to return them to reality and Ichigo was vaguely grateful for its distraction.

"Rukia!"

He sidestepped another attack and tackled the shinigami to the ground, covering her entire body with his own as Hollow's attack caught the side of a building and caused debris to shower down upon them. His left arm holding the stubborn shinigami down by her shoulder blades, he drew zanpaku-to with his right.

"Stay down. I think I found a way to defeat this fat tub of lard."

She tried to give him an answer, but he left within a heartbeat and she was left alone while Ichigo drew the Hollow towards the opposite side of the road. Rukia sat up gingerly and brushed some of the road dust off of her sky blue dress. Her chest was sore from their impact with the tar ground and her hips weren't doing much better. Being as thin as she was there was little padding over her pelvic bones to protect them from the hard collision with the ground. She knew that she would be black and blue within a few hours.

"Stupid male," Rukia snarled. "If he ever bothered to listen I would have told him to reach higher ground to start with. Ouch," she flinched when she tried to stand, "and stupid gigai body. I should have gotten one that didn't have built in nerve sensors."

If she had had a choice she would have been tempted to get a taller, curvier body. Alas, the gigai was only a physical frame that housed her spirit while it recovered from ailment. It reflected on the surface what was already there in essence and did not deviate from what it was programmed to do. Rukia sighed. It would have been nice to not have to crane her neck to such an awkward angle every time she spoke to Ichigo, though. And as if to add insult to injury he was growing taller by the day. He was growing both taller and building muscle strength. Only half of this was his natural growth spurt. Rukia suspected that Ichigo would have remained a lean, almost thin, man if it weren't for the physical exertion he had to do daily in their hunts. Between the constant exercise and using the heavy zanpaku-to to exorcise Hollows, Ichigo was building a lot of muscles he would not have gained as a normal human. She only hoped that Ichigo could put that newly acquired strength to use and defeat their latest foe.

He was close to his destination: a radio transmission tower at the end of the street. It was high up enough that he could gain leverage over the immense Hollow, but also free of civilians who could potentially get hurt in the crossfire. Ichigo sprinted with even steps, having long ago mastered the technique of breathing to keep his lungs full and oxygen flowing through his body. A glance back confirmed that indeed the Hollow was following him and that Rukia had not. His eyes turned forward again as he picked up speed.

Stubborn woman. Didn't she know how small she was? How weak now that she had lost her dark powers? Ichigo flinched internally as an unwelcome wave of guilt washed over him. After all, it was for him that she had lost those powers to begin with. Ichigo remembered all too well how she had come between him and the Hollow intent on biting his head off the first day they met. Instead the Hollow had bitten into her shoulder and incapacitated her to the point that she had to share half of her dark power with him to make him a temporary Soul Reaper. But something had gone astray. Instead of half, he had taken all of her dark power. Now she was stuck here, helpless but for the kidô that she could perform.

Ichigo darted up the stairs of the tower, closing down on his thoughts to focus on the battle at hand. He could not lose. He would not lose. If he did, then what would happen to his family and friends? Their latent powers had awakened, but none of them were up to fighting Hollows or being a Soul Reaper. He had to keep on fighting to keep them safe. An image of his mother drifted into his consciousness, causing Ichigo to lose a step and stumble. He gritted his teeth and shoved that thought aside. It would not help him now to think about her death.

The Hollow on the street screamed when it lost sight of him. "_Come out Soul Reaper! Try to hide and I will consume your little friend._"

Its words spurred the Soul Reaper up the last flight of stairs to the observation level. Ichigo sighted the triangular bone mask that covered the Hollow's face and briefly wondered who it had been in its lifetime. Then he drew the zanpaku-to and leaped down from the observation deck, with the sword aimed straight for the unsuspecting Hollow's head.

The Hollow howled. And unlike before, when its scream was one of rage and frustration, now it was one of pain. Ichigo relentlessly pressed downward with his sword, cleaving the Hollow in two straight down its center. He landed on both feet, his descent having slowed down considerably due to his cutting through the Hollow. Head down and shoulders heaving from the belated awareness of exertion from running up so many flights of stairs, Ichigo cleaned and sheathed the zanpaku-to. He rose grimly and observed as the Hollow disintegrated into thin air. Once the air cleared he headed back to where Rukia was probably in the process of erasing memories of this event from all of the witnesses' minds.

End Chapter 1

* * *

Author's Notes:

This is my first Bleach fanfic.  It's been a long time since I've written any fanfiction, so please excuse me if it doesn't flow quite right. Trying to keep them in character but it's a little difficult with just Rukia and Ichigo interacting… next time I'll add some of the other characters.


	2. Cherry Blossoms in the Summer

Disclaimer: Bleach is a manga created by Kubo Tite, published in Shonen Jump, and Viz Comics. This fanfic is all me though.

**Close Encounters**

**A Bleach Fanfiction**

By: Shun'u

**II: Cherry Blossoms in the Summer**

* * *

The day was crisp; this year spring clung to her mornings. Evidence of her presence lay in the moist blanket of dewdrops that glistened beneath the rising sun. The days were warm in mid-summer, just shy of being uncomfortable, and yet the mornings still began with a slight chill in the air. By mid morning all evidence of the evening were gone as moisture vaporized and heat beat down upon the citizens of Japan. A slight haze could be seen shimmering above the ground in particular areas of Tokyo with poor air circulation. As Ichigo walked the streets, heading home after having picked up tofu for Yuzu to make miso soup with, he noted that women were beginning to carry parasols to protect themselves from the glaring sun. The ground ate up all of that heat, shoring it up for the coming autumn and winter. 

Summer solstice had come and gone with barely a footnote of recognition, and the days were once again beginning to shorten though the difference in time was barely noticeable as of yet. The cherry blossoms that symbolized spring and the samurai spirit had long ago fallen. Now nothing was left upon the modest trees but lush green leaves that created an umbrella of foliage above the roots that spread beneath its shade.

Ichigo wondered if Rukia had discovered perfume yet in her ongoing studies of human behavior. When he had first met her he hadn't really paid that much attention. The weather this year had been unusual, not even beginning to warm until late into April. As a result the cherry blossoms hadn't bloomed until May rolled around. When Ichigo met the little shinigami there were still sakura mochi being sold, and plenty of sakura scented soaps and candles in the stores. Because the scent of cherry blossoms was everywhere, Ichigo hadn't noticed. It wasn't until later when Yuzu and Karin mentioned something in passing that he realized why the cherry blossoms were still in full bloom for him.

"_Ichigo, have you started using a different soap?" Yuzu asked him as he rummaged through the cabinet for snacks._

_Luck was with him and he snatched up a couple of juice boxes, a box of tomato pretz, and a bag of cheese curls. Stuffing the juice boxes into his track jacket pockets, Ichigo passed by Yuzu on his way upstairs. It took him a minute to register the question Yuzu had asked him._

"_Hm?" Ichigo glanced over his shoulder and wondered what his little sister was talking about. "No, why?"_

_Karin glanced up from her pop music magazine. She had offered to help Yuzu make dinner but her younger sister was rather adamant about doing the chore herself, so now she found herself just passing time reading about the latest j-pop albums to be released._

"_His whole room smells like it. Maybe its potpourri or something," she said. Unable to stop herself from egging on her brother, Karin added, "Don't you think that's a little girly, Ichigo?"_

_Having no clue as to what they were discussing, Ichigo looked from one to the other suspiciously. His little sisters might have looked like little angels to an outsider, but Ichigo knew better. As much as he adored them there were times when he would rather face a horde of Hollows than face off with the pair of them – especially if they were working in conjunction with one another._

"_What the hell are you two talking about?" he asked warily._

_Isshin chose that moment to enter the room. He heard Ichigo's question and immediately tackled his son into a rather painful looking head lock. The rambunctious man ignored his son's grunts of pain at the awkward contortions this forced his body into._

"_Ichigo! Don't swear in front of your adorable sisters!"_

"_Aah! That hurts old man!" Ichigo bent at the knees and grabbed his father's arm before he dropped his weight and threw the overly excitable Kurosaki over his shoulder. "What the hell did you attack me for?"_

"_How many times do I have to tell you to watch your language in front of Karin and Yuzu?" Isshin yelled. The doctor grabbed his hair and tugged until it stood up on end in all directions. Fake tears made their way down Isshin's whiskered cheeks._

"_Oh, their poor minds will be corrupted!" he wailed. "How can I ever face Masaki in the afterlife?"_

"_Daddy," Karin interjected, calmly flipping another page of her magazine, "we're already corrupted."_

"_Nooo! My poor babies!"_

_Ichigo watched with a scowl as his father fell into his usual melodramatic diatribe. He let out a puff of air, in equal parts disgusted by and resigned to the inevitability of such behavior from his father._

"_Sheesh, Pops, you're the one who's corrupting them. Stop being such an idiot and calm down."_

"_Ano," Yuzu waved the wooden spoon she had been using to stir the soup. She smiled apologetically to dispel some of the building tension between the two males of the household, "It's okay daddy. We're used to Ichigo swearing all the time."_

_Karin snorted as Yuzu mediated and worked her soothing magic to calm their father down. She shook her head, resigned to the fact that her family easily classified as dysfunctional. Ichigo was at the head of the staircase, heading to the relative peace of his room, before she dropped her magazine and caught up with him._

"_Ichigo, do you have any more of that sakura potpourri?"_

"_Hm?" Ichigo looked over his shoulder at his sister strangely. "I don't have any potpourri."_

_Karin cocked her hip to the side and crossed her arms. "Well, whatever it is that you use to scent up your room: oils, incense, whatever. Do you have any extra?"_

_Ichigo frowned as he continued down the hallway. "I don't use anything. Ask Yuzu if she has something. She's the one who does the household shopping."_

"_Huh, I wonder if Yuzu's right." Karin said thoughtfully as her brother disappeared around the corner to his room, in all likelihood looking to escape from any further melodrama. Her lips pursed, "Maybe he does use a special soap. Wonder where he got it from. It smells nice. Still girly though."_

_It wasn't until Ichigo got to his room that he realized why his sisters had been asking their questions. The scent of cherry blossoms was delicate but it was there from the moment he came upon his closed door with the old wood "15" sign still hanging on it from when Karin and Yuzu had presented it to him on his 15th birthday last year. The smell of full bloom sakura permeated every corner of his room. Ichigo walked from corner to corner to locate its source - certain that there had to be a logical reason for his bedroom to smell like flowers that were no longer in season. Then it dawned on him what the source might be as he traced the scent to its strongest point: the closet._

_Ichigo continued to sniff the air. The closet was indeed the source of the soft scent. He couldn't believe that he hadn't noticed until now. Knocking lightly, he waited for a response from his roommate._

_The door slid open shortly. Rukia's fingers appeared first as they were wrapped around the door edge. Then little by little the rest of her was revealed sitting cross legged with a book open in her lap. Kon lay napping at her side. She had changed out of her school uniform, but instead of wearing pajamas or one of her many dresses as he expected she was wearing a pale blue jog suit with white trimming. Ichigo was momentarily startled by her appearance. She almost looked like a normal teenager dressed casually as she was, except that instead of the fifteen that she was pretending to be she looked to be about twelve years old with her big eyes and too fragile bones._

"_Ichigo?" she tilted her head and looked up at him. "What's the matter?"_

_Ichigo didn't respond. Instead he poked his head inside the closet and… sniffed? Rukia might not have been very familiar with human customs, but she was fairly certain that this was not normal behavior._

"_Are you sniffing the closet?" she asked incredulously._

"_What are you using, air freshener?"_

_  
It took her a moment to connect his question to his odd behavior. "No, I'm not. What do you smell for?"_

"_Cherry Blossoms," he replied absently as he continued sniffing around the small space._

_Rukia edged back when his head followed his nose right past her to reach the far corner of his closet. When he immediately swiveled back she yelped and backed up as much as the confined space would allow. He frowned at her and sniffed a little closer. A confused look crossed his visage when suddenly he reared back and jabbed a finger in her direction._

"_It's you!" he accused._

"_Wh- what?" Rukia asked, completely lost as to what precisely he was accusing her of._

"_You're the one who smells like Cherry Blossoms," he elaborated with a deep frown. "And you're making the rest of my room smell like it too. Stop using so much of that stuff."_

"_What stuff?" she asked in exasperation._

_It took a minute for Ichigo to process her question and the utter confusion in her face. A tiny suspicion began to form in his mind._

"_Rukia," he began cautiously, "do you know what perfume is?"_

"_Perfume?" she asked, that trademark childlike curiosity of hers piqued. "What is that?"_

_Ichigo's head drooped until his chin hit his chest. He began rubbing at his temple to dispel what was certain to be the beginnings of a monster migraine._

"_Never mind," he said, suddenly feeling tired. "You can't help it."_

"_Kurosaki Ichigo," Rukia started in her voice of impending doom. Ichigo could almost see dark clouds forming around her head as she declared with an imperious air, "You have five seconds to explain yourself."_

_Ichigo grimaced. Having Rukia around was almost like having an older sister, now that he thought of it. Who else would be able to say his whole name in quite that way that made him feel like a recalcitrant child?_

"_It's a," he fumbled for an appropriate word, "it's like scented water," he finally said, feeling a bit put out for having to explain anything at all._

"_Scented water?" Rukia repeated. She was beginning to grasp why he had been behaving as he had. "What does it smell like?"_

"_Whatever you want," Ichigo said, relieved at her ready acceptance of his answer. "There are different types."_

"_I see," Rukia nodded. "And where might I acquire this perfume?"_

_He had known that was coming. Rukia never accepted a simple explanation. Something in her always wanted to experience for herself what she learned through reading or observation._

"_In department stores," he said warily, wondering if Rukia had ever been to one of those before. Of course she proved his suspicions true. Ichigo muffled a groan as those midnight eyes lit up in gleeful anticipation of a new adventure._

"_Department stores?"_

That was when he had bolted. Nothing, absolutely nothing could induce him to go shopping with Rukia. Not torture, maiming, nor the threat of death could force him to take the shinigami into a department store. Just imagining the headaches such an event would cause had his head spinning. And so, despite his heroics and bravery in the face of evil Hollows and possible death, Ichigo conceded to the lesser evil and moved to escape from the dreaded department store question and inevitable shopping expedition.

That was when fortune had smiled upon him and had the cell phone ringing shrilly to announce the arrival of yet another Hollow. The alarm was sufficient distraction for Rukia, and they had both jetted out of Ichigo's second story window to pursue their foe.

Ichigo stared up at his ceiling, contemplating the complexities of his life. Two months and counting, he was tasked with being a Soul Reaper. So far as he was aware, Rukia had not recuperated all of her dark power yet. Although she was still fully able to use her kidô and other skills, her ability to be a Soul Reaper was next to non-existent. And as the days passed he was becoming more accustomed to his role as a Soul Reaper.

It wasn't so bad; this business of returning Hollows to the Soul Society, except that it was cutting severely into his sleep time. Not to mention his friends and family were gradually being drawn into this mess as well. Guilt gnawed at him. He hadn't intended for any of them to become involved at all, let alone have their latent abilities flare to life. Now not only Karin, but also Chad, Orihime, and Tatsuki were waking to their abilities. Minor though they were, they were just enough to get them all into trouble.

The complications kept getting more and more tangled.

Ichigo closed his eyes, suddenly weary to the bone. Rukia had gone directly to the Urahara Shoten after school to charge up her gigai, and for once there weren't any Hollow activities to be seen. He had taken advantage of his down time to catch up on his studies and then sat down to a family dinner that was so rare for him nowadays. Now he was replete and drowsy. Ichigo let his thoughts drift off and burrowed into his bed, wishing that for once he could fall asleep like a normal person, but knowing that he would not until he knew Rukia was back.

Unaware that she was taking away from Ichigo's rest, Rukia was sitting on the windowsill outside Ichigo's bedroom. She gazed up at the stars that were starting to peek out from behind the dark blanket of nightfall. Cicadas were calling out to one another, creating a cacophony of sound. Rukia found it strangely pleasant to be able to stargaze without interference, and the reassurance that the people she watched over were safe lent to her peace of mind.

A gust of wind blew a lock of black hair free from its normal place in her typically neat coiffure. Rukia tucked it behind her ear automatically, not really caring for anything other than to displace it from her eyes. Another gust followed the first, sending a chill up Rukia's arms straight into her chest. She shivered and rubbed arms vigorously with slim hands. Despite the activity her limbs remained chilled. Rukia sighed, wishing she had thought to bring a sweater with her. Despite the heavy warmth of summer her gigai was prone to chills unless sufficiently covered, reminding Rukia once more of her displeasure at the weaknesses of her temporary body. As a shinigami she had never been victim to the weather.

Rukia brought her feet up to the windowsill, careful not to make any sound, conscious of the fact that Ichigo was a light sleeper despite his unwillingness to rise in the morning at his father's bidding. Edging the window up ever so slowly, Rukia slid into the warm room. Closing the window behind her, she tiptoed around the bed and its inhabitant to the closet. A creak of the floorboard had her freezing up and taking a peek at her involuntary roommate. Noting the even rise and fall of his chest beneath the covers Rukia released a silent breath of relief. Ichigo got so few opportunities to rest nowadays that she took extra care not to disturb him when they managed to get a reprieve from Soul Reaper duties. Not that she would ever admit to such a thing if questioned. She preferred that he think of her as a demanding taskmaster; one that kept him on his toes. A Soul Reaper on constant high alert was a successful Soul Reaper – and a live one if she could help it.

Settling into her makeshift futon after swiftly changing into Yuzu's borrowed pajamas, Rukia stared up at the wooden ceiling. Tomorrow she would begin teaching Ichigo how to do kidô. He had to learn how to heal himself for the time when she wouldn't be there to heal him.

Black lashes swept down to conceal midnight eyes, and Rukia allowed the sandman to steal her away. Almost instantly falling into a deep sleep, she never felt the careful hands that brought her comforter up to her chin and tuck it securely around her. The shivers that had been racking her frame dispelled beneath the warmth and her body relaxed into the boneless state that only true comfort could bring forth.

* * *

Author's Notes: Maa, ne. Not much action in this chapter. More will happen in the next one. 


	3. Of Bunnies and Men

Disclaimer: Bleach is a manga created by Kubo Tite, published in Shonen Jump, and Viz Comics. This fanfic is all me though.

Author's Note: The timeline for this fanfic begins just before Abarai Renji shows up, so… this means the fanfic is AU (alternate universe). Please take that into consideration as you read.

June 9, 2005

**Close Encounters**

**A Bleach Fanfiction**

By: Shun'u

**III: Of Bunnies and Men**

* * *

Two months she had been missing; for the entirety of those months he had worried and searched for her everywhere, from the Kuchiki family estate to their old haunts in Soul Society to the mortal realm where Soul Reapers were so often sent to dispatch hollows. Despite his diligence not a single clue could be unearthed as to Rukia's whereabouts. And Renji worried. He worried because he knew just how reckless that fool girl could be, and he worried because he knew that he was the only one who would.

For quite some time now Renji had been aware of the tension in Rukia every time her adoptive family was mentioned. Nothing quite so obvious to a stranger or one not intimately keyed in to Rukia's moods and thoughts. But for him, who was her oldest and closest friend, it was clear as the serpentine brooks that ran through the vast grounds of the Kuchiki estate. The reason for her discomfiture was all the more confusing, for Renji thought that being adopted by the Kuchiki family, who were the equivalent to nobility in Soul Society, would have brought her great happiness. But this was not so, as was apparent in Rukia's behavior.

In the forty years that they had adopted her, Renji saw her draw into herself, changing from the boisterous girl that he had known into a solemn young woman with few words and little laughter. Her joie de vivre was nearly extinguished and eyes that had once been curious and bright were now dark and unreadable at the best of times. He once asked her if she was happy, after her adoption, and Rukia had simply replied that life was easier. That was the last time he had asked about her life in that gilded cage, for he had glimpsed for a brief moment such desolation in her dark blue eyes that he feared knowing any more.

As time passed he had visited less. It was not that she did not welcome his visits, or that either of them had changed, but because he knew that he did not belong there with the nobles. His aspirations had always been to become a captain and leader of his own division of shinigami, but they did not exceed beyond that. He was a person used to depending upon his own ingenuity and preferred to lead a simple existence. Being surrounded by all that glitter in the Kuchiki household was stifling. It was not until much later that he realized Rukia felt the same way. By then it was too late to take away the loneliness evident in her every glance. He couldn't bring back the sparkle in her eyes.

And then she disappeared.

Abarai Renji was not exactly what one would describe as friendly or approachable. In fact, he fairly radiated anti-socialism on an alarmingly regular basis. Whether this was due to the fact that he had grown up as an orphan who roamed the streets scrounging for food and shelter, or if it was a trait inherent in his genetic make-up, was never quite clear to anyone except for maybe Rukia – who knew him best. However, regardless of how he came to be his way, Vice Captain Abarai was not a person who encouraged friendly chats and overt gestures of concern from others. If he was in a foul mood then others were highly encouraged to stay out of his path lest they desired to be cleaved in two. If he was in a good mood then it was acceptable for others to conduct conversations with him so long as they kept the conversation short and concise. From the day that Kuchiki Rukia was reported as missing in action, he had been in a foul mood.

Thus it was that Renji found that he was quite alone during his hunts over the last two weeks. Although this was desirable to him for many reasons – as he did not have to worry about some half trained rookie getting in his way during a battle – he was not oblivious to the fact that other shinigami were avoiding him either. Whatever the reason for their avoidance, he hoped that they would continue to do so, for if they found out what he was learning then Rukia would be in dire straits.

Renji scowled down at the mundane scene unfolding beneath him from his position at the top of the school. He had found Rukia a week ago when he had sensed large amounts of spiritual energy originating out of Karakura city. It was a Sunday, one of the days that humans considered a holiday, so the streets were not busy. Summer heat had been dampened by a late evening rain the day before, and the skies had cleared. The humidity that was always present in Japan was nearly nonexistent. Renji had been returning from a successful hunt when he had felt such a swirling mix of energies that he had stopped mid-air to change directions and investigate as to the source of that power.

The last thing he had expected to see was Menos Grande breaking through the barrier that separated the in-between from the human world. On top of that he had to witness as a fool of a boy barely beyond weaning age chased off Menos Grande with a ridiculously large zanpaku-to. But neither of these things had shocked him, for at the time he had honestly mistaken the boy for a shinigami. What put him into a state of shock was something else altogether. For there, standing by the boy and looking as though she didn't have any duties or responsibilities in the world, dressed in human clothes, and using a temporary gigai was Rukia.

In that moment Renji made a spontaneous decision. He did not reveal himself to Rukia, but instead cloaked his aura to avoid her detection. That day began what would be seven endless days of disturbing discovery for Renji. A friend whom he had once thought to understand best, turned out to be a near stranger as he watched from afar the changes wrought during her time spent with humans. Nothing could have proven this observation more than what he presently witnessed.

"Kuchiki-san, would you like to try some of my homemade sakura-mochi?" Mizuiro asked.

Rukia blinked at the pink and green concoction being offered to her, not quite sure if it was real or plastic with its perfect coloring and glossy texture. "Um…"

"Eh?" Keigo pointed at the large bento box filled with colorful rice-cake desserts in Mizuiro's lap. "Where'd you get that, Mizuiro? One of your older women making lunch for you?"

A faint blush spread across Mizuiro's cheeks at Keigo's typical tactlessness. "Ah, well, you see..."

Seeing Mizuiro fumble for an answer that didn't make him sound like a freeloading womanizer, Chad interceded quietly, "They look good, Mizuiro. It must have taken a lot of time and effort to make them."

This brought a cheerful smile to Mizuiro's face. "Don't they? Noriko-chan's family owns a pastry shop so she learned how to bake and make delicacies from a young age. They just opened up a branch here in Karakura city that she runs on her own."

"What!" Tears streamed down Keigo's cheeks as he grabbed onto Mizuiro's jacket. "That's so unfair!" he lamented loudly. "How come you get to have all of the rich and talented girlfriends?"

Caught up in his rant about the unfairness of life and cursing Mizuiro's good fortune, Keigo never saw the schoolbag loaded with text books and dictionaries come down on his head. Chad and Mizuiro did, as they were sitting across from him, but somehow both failed to warn the melodramatic boy in time to save Keigo from receiving a goose egg on his head.

"Shut up, Keigo. You're disturbing the neighborhood."

Ichigo plopped down by his newly concussed friend with an irritated scowl evident on his face. The squeeze was a little snug but Ichigo managed to wedge himself between Keigo and Rukia quite successfully. To avoid having too much contact with Keigo, who was known to accidentally knock people out with his gesticulating arms in the middle of animated conversations, Ichigo scooted closer to Rukia.

"Ne, Mizuiro-san," Rukia said sweetly, politely ignoring how Ichigo was invading her personal space.

"Yes, Kuchiki-san?" Mizuiro just as politely ignored the angry tick developing in Ichigo's temple and focused all of his attention on her. He couldn't quite figure out how it came to be, but for some reason he was very attracted to Rukia despite the fact that he was normally only attracted to older women.

"May I try one of those?" Rukia demurely lowered her head and indicated the tempting sakura mochi with a glance.

Mizuiro sighed, quite taken by Rukia's ladylike manners. He eagerly pressed a perfectly round mochi into her small hand, holding onto her fingers for just a moment longer than necessary and relishing the feel of those slim fingers in his. It was amazing how being in her presence made him feel big and strong. She was just so delicate, it made him want to bundle her up and tuck her somewhere safe and warm. The distinctive sound of a throat clearing made it through the pleasant fog surrounding Mizuiro's consciousness.

He absently advised, "Ichigo, maybe you should go to the nurse for that. You might be catching a cold."

"Mi-zu-i-ro!" Ichigo ground out through clenched teeth.

In the next moment Rukia's hand was snatched out of his and Mizuiro found himself stroking empty air. Abashed, he realized that he had been stroking Rukia's hand without being aware of it. He quickly retrieved his hand before Ichigo had a chance to crush.

"Ah!" Mizuiro bowed hastily, lest she think that he was being too forward. "Please excuse me, Kuchiki-san. I don't know what got into me. I'm not normally so forward."

Meanwhile, Rukia had just taken a bite out of the sakura mochi. The leaf was salty and had a slightly rough texture to it. Not quite sure how this sakura mochi was supposed to taste, as she had nothing to compare it to, Rukia tried to keep her expression neutral upon first tasting the saltiness. Although not definite, she had been under the impression that desserts were supposed to be sweet confections, and not at all salty. Then, as she began to chew into the mochi and tasted the sweet red bean filling, Rukia's eyes lit up.

"Um!" Her smile was bright and happy. "This is good."

"Really?" Mizuiro held up the box of mochi to the group. "Please have some more. Everyone, please help yourselves. I couldn't possibly finish all of this myself."

Rukia turned to Ichigo when all he did was lean back and open up his bento box that Yuzu had prepared while Chad and Keigo dug into Mizuiro's offering. She peered at the contents of Ichigo's box curiously.

Ichigo sighed internally, wanting to but unable to pierce that happiness that Mizuiro had brought to her by offering a simple dessert. "What?" he asked.

Rukia bent closer to Ichigo, eyes intent on his box. Ichigo opened his mouth to say something scathing, anything that would make her back away and take with her the soft scent of cherry blossoms.

A shocked gasp stopped Ichigo from uttering anything. "Ichigo, how, how could you!"

Of course her exclamation brought everyone else's attention on him. Ichigo scowled, knowing that having a peaceful lunch was as distant a dream as having a normal father.

"What?" he asked again.

Rukia sniffled and raised teary, accusatory eyes. "How could you?"

"Ichigo! Apologize to Kuchiki-san, this instant," Keigo demanded.

Ichigo gaped, "Apologize for what?" he yelled, nearly ready to tear his hair out.

This made Keigo pause. "Ah, um…" When no intelligible response made itself known, Keigo settled on a somewhat confused, "for whatever it is that upset her?"

"Kuchiki-san," Chad said reasonably, having connected two and two together after he saw the contents of Ichigo's bento box, "is it perhaps the bunny rabbit onigiri that are upsetting you?"

"Yes," she sniffled. "The poor sweet bunnies. How could you eat them, Ichigo?"

"But," Ichigo looked from one to another of his friends for support. Finding none from his traitorous so-called-friends, he said somewhat defensively, "They're just onigiri! They're not real bunnies."

"But they look like cute little bunnies!" Rukia argued ever so reasonably.

"Damn it, woman," Ichigo yelled, "They're supposed to look like cute little bunnies!"

Horrified by this statement, Rukia looked at Ichigo's box as if it contained something monstrous. She finally said, "But, that's terrible! Why would you do such a thing?"

"Ichigo, maybe you shouldn't eat the bunnies," Mizuiro suggested diplomatically.

"They're not bunnies!" Frustration laced Ichigo's voice.

"I didn't know you could be so heartless, Ichigo." Keigo accused with a jabbing finger.

"Keigo," Ichigo gritted, "get that finger out of my face or I'll break it off, you hear me?"

The finger was immediately retracted along with the hand it was attached to, to be cuddled defensively against Keigo's chest. Ichigo gave up whatever intentions he had of eating the damned bunnies.

"Fine! Damn it, stop crying, Rukia," he ordered. "I won't eat the god damned bunnies, all right?"

Rukia clasped her hands to her chest. "Really?"

"Yes, really," Ichigo proved the verity of his statement by picking out the bunny onigiri with his chopsticks and wrapping them in a napkin. "There, you see? I won't eat them. Are you happy now?"

Rukia smiled, and suddenly it didn't seem all that inconvenient for him to give up part of his meal just to make her happy.

Renji cut a swath through the trees lining the park trail, uncaring as they toppled over and fell upon the graveled path. He had to release some of this pent up anger and frustration before he confronted Rukia. If he didn't then he was afraid that he would wind up doing something violent and drastic when he came face to face with her.

What had that morning been about? Why had she smiled like that for that brat of a boy?

Another tree fell, only this one received a bit more attention than the others so instead of a whole log, it fell in splinters. Small slivers of wood flew in all directions and embedded themselves in nearby bushes and trees. A few hit the stone benches that were strategically placed throughout the park to provide pedestrians with relatively private niches in which to rest. The splinters skidded off of the stone but not before leaving a score mark behind.

The Vice Captain came to a grinding halt by one of the abused stone benches and sheathed his zanpaku-to. The birds that had been nesting above him in a tree flew off, chirping loudly, and almost in what one would call a warning to other creatures to avoid the danger below. Renji ignored all of this as he tried to muddle through the confusing scene he had witnessed earlier in the day.

Camaraderie.

Rukia had found a new circle, and that circle consisted of humans. Frail, ephemeral humans whose lives were but a flicker of candlelight compared to a shinigami's ever burning flame.

Friendship.

That boy, Ichigo, as Renji had come to hatefully learn, had inconceivably insinuated himself into Rukia's life and become someone she valued. He was also the human who had stolen Rukia's dark power and by way of chance become a Soul Reaper. Renji clenched his fists until the tendons and ligaments of his finger joints ached with the tension. That boy was the reason that Rukia was stuck in a gigai body and living with humans. During the week of Renji's silent surveillance he had managed to witness three incidents of that boy and Rukia going out to return a Hollow to the Soul Society. Each of those times Rukia's already precarious life had been endangered.

And each of those times Renji mentally hammered another nail into that boy's coffin.

Renji raised blood red eyes to the sky above, gauging time by the placement of the sun, and figured Rukia would be returning from the Urahara Shoten soon. Determination making his strides even more ground eating than usual, Renji set out for the Kurosaki clinic. Rukia was returning home, to where she belonged, even if he had to drag her kicking and screaming along the way. And if he had to kill that boy in order to complete his mission, then all the better. Rukia had no need for weaklings such as that boy when she had him to protect her until her dark power returned.

* * *

End Part III 


	4. Shoten

Disclaimer: Bleach is a manga created by Kubo Tite, published in Shonen Jump, and Viz Comics. This fanfic is all me though.

Author's Note: The timeline for this fanfic begins just before Abarai Renji shows up, so… this means the fanfic is AU (alternate universe). Please take that into consideration as you read.

June 13, 2005

* * *

**Close Encounters**

**A Bleach Fanfiction**

By: Shun'u

**IV: Shoten

* * *

**

"Urahara?" Rukia called out to the eerily silent shop.

Stepping through the doorway, to enter its neatly arranged confines, she let the door snap shut behind her. Dust motes could be seen as afternoon light filtered through the blinds to cast soft rays into the shop, illuminating shelves of dried foods and pickled vegetables. Any passerby would assume that the Urahara Shoten was a typical family run local grocery with the standard items in stock. What they didn't see was what was in the back room where the eclectic and unique items particular to this store were kept.

Rukia gingerly felt her way through the dark interior, curious as to where the regular shopkeeper and workers were. If Tessai weren't there to greet customers then either Jinta or Ururu normally were. The deceptively normal children actually served better than most as watch guards.

"Ururu?"

"Jinta? Tessai?"

Rukia felt her toe come up against something towards the back of the shop. Hands came up to feel around her for a light switch. Finding one along the far wall, she flicked the overhead lights to life. She covered her eyes hastily as they blinked and became teary from the sudden brightness.

"Kuchiki-san?"

Tessai's looming form was a vague shadow to her adjusting eyes. For a moment the only feature that she could see clearly was the dark outline of his carefully shaped mustache. "Tessai? Where is everyone?"

"Oh, Jinta and Ururu were sent on a task for the manager." Tessai politely ushered her past the back door into another room that was obviously intended as living quarters. "Would you like to see the manager?"

"Yes, please," Rukia said. She finally lowered her hands and followed Tessai through a curtained doorway. "Why is the shop closed today?"

"Ah, Urahara-san says that he has an important project to work on today, and that he doesn't have the time to run the shop."

Rukia slanted a disbelieving glance at Tessai, and saw how his shoulders were tense and that his hands were opening and closing rhythmically in an unconscious show of distress.

"I see," she murmured. "And what do you think is the real reason?"

Tessai's hands relaxed and he sighed. "Well, perhaps Urahara-san was anticipating a visit from his most honored customer."

Rukia didn't know how to respond to that – so she didn't. Nodding her head to show that she had heard him, Rukia pushed through the curtains separating the main shop from the private quarters in the back. There she found Urahara happily rummaging through a box of… well… junk. If she had had a better or kinder way of wording it, she would have, but seeing as everything that he tossed to the side upon digging it out of the box was very clearly junk she couldn't conjure up the energy and creativity required to think of a euphemism.

Lightly stepping through the landmine of useless knickknacks and old clothes, Rukia closed in on the uncharacteristically focused Urahara. Some portion of her mind expected him to jump up and hop to another half finished project, as he was never one to have all of his attention focused on one thing for very long. Rukia always chalked up his apparent attention deficit disorder to the sheer genius that kept his brain working overdrive at all times. There were reasons why Urahara, a former Shinigami of the Captain ranks, had been exiled from Soul Society. The savant was simply too dangerous to have around.

"Urahara," she called.

"Hm?" Something small and furry flew by Rukia's head. She canted to the side to avoid getting her head lobbed off by the following set of throwing knives.

"Urahara!"

"Eh? What? What?" Urahara finally peeked over his shoulder at the very outraged and very feminine yell that did not belong to Tessai or either of the children under his employ. Tilting his stripped hat back to get a better view he scoured the shop for the source of that yell. He found her with her back against one of the crates lining the wall. Rukia stood huffing from the aftereffects of her minor scare, trying to catch her breath and pressing a hand to the rapidly beating heart in her chest.

"Ah! Kuchiki-san, what brings you here so early in the evening?"

A small hand fisted on either side of her, Rukia marched up to where Urahara was still kneeling. Urahara smirked as her desire to punch him came through louder than words from eyes that banked a dark fire. He had only been playing with her, of course, curious as to how deep her patience ran these days. Once upon a time, Kuchiki Rukia would have been storming into his shop and making demands instead of courteously waiting on him. She had changed; as had he. There had been a time when he would not have offered assistance free of will and out of friendship. His mercenary soul had always set a price on every service and demand – until now.

"Urahara," Rukia almost bit her tongue to keep from yelling at him.

She needed this particular Shinigami's help and she could not risk alienating him with her temper. Taking a deep breath she conjured up a mental image of Ichigo being hunted down by a hoard of Soul Society assassins. There was a high possibility of this happening, and that thought alone was enough to sober her up. Rukia turned somber eyes upon the observant shopkeeper.

"I'm in trouble."

Urahara tucked his chin into his chest and crossed his arms to tuck both hands inside the opposite sleeve of his outer shirt. He hummed, and Rukia couldn't tell if it was in agreement or acknowledgement. Her brow creased with a worried frown.

"What's that hum for?" she asked impatiently.

"Rukia-chan," Urahara began walking further back into the shop, past the storage area and towards the living quarters. For once his voice was serious and lacking that devil may care attitude that was so much a part of his charm. "Come with me. This discussion is better done in a more comfortable place than a storage room, don't you think? I'm sure Ururu has some cold barley tea and snacks prepared for us in the refrigerator."

Ichigo paced his room. He had been doing so for the past hour so it was with something akin to surprise that he did not see any physical evidence of his anxiety yet – no worn groove in the floorboards to show for his pacing.

Rukia had been gone for too long and he was beginning to think that maybe he should have searched for her sooner in case a Hollow had decided to make an appearance. It would be just like her to try to take one on without calling for him. Her pride wouldn't allow her to run away. Ichigo sped up his circular path. A glance at the clock on his desk showed that it was nearing eight in the evening. Dinner had come and gone and he had had ample time to catch up on all of his homework and even do some extra for the following week.

School had always been one of those things he took great care and pride in. Growing up with his outlandish coloring hadn't been easy. Being motherless for half of his life hadn't helped either. His father took pride in the fact that his son was able to beat the hell out of challengers and didn't bother to discipline him when he got into fights. Every time Isshin had been called to the school because of a fight Ichigo had been involved in he showed the proper outrage. However, that small amount of parental guidance disappeared into thin air as soon as they stepped off of the school grounds. From then until they reached home all Ichigo would hear was how he had made his father proud by not being a pushover. Soon enough Ichigo developed a frightening lack of conscience when it came to brawling. It wasn't that he started fights. It was more that the fights came to him. He didn't know when or why or how he had become a trouble magnet, but the fact remained that bad things tended to happen around him.

Logically, Ichigo knew that Rukia was more than capable of taking care of herself, that she was in fact much older than her appearance led credence to. Logic had nothing to do with the gnawing fear inside of him. Thoughts of his mother swirled up to the surface and became confused with his mental image of Rukia. He shook his head to dispel the parallels his overtaxed brain was making between Rukia and his mother. They weren't the same. Rukia had the skill and knowledge to come out of any battle with the upper hand. He didn't have to worry about her. He shouldn't worry about her.

That did not stop him from grabbing up his jacket and heading towards his bedroom window. Ichigo had one leg out the window before he remembered that he had to keep up appearances for his family. Cursing under his breath he drew back in and marched over to the half closed closet door. Pushing it open, he searched for the bag of stuffing known as Kon.

The stuffed bear was snoozing heavily in the middle of Rukia's pillow. The mod-soul was oblivious to everything around him as he lay with his button nose pressed into the pillow. Ichigo suppressed the bewildering twinge of jealousy he felt at seeing the stuffed animal so comfortably ensconced in what amounted to Rukia's bed.

"KON!"

"Aaaah!" Kon leaped up into the air. He landed on both feet with arms raised in a classic kung fu pose. Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"You've been watching too many kung fu movies," Ichigo commented wryly. Then he realized that the bear was still asleep while standing. "Hey, wake up."

A snore was Ichigo's only answer. An evil glint flickered in the depths of Ichigo's brown eyes. He picked up the sleeping bear and brought him to the bathroom opposite his bedroom. Dropping the still sleeping mod-soul into the sink, Ichigo turned on the cold water full blast.

Kon screamed and came to wide awake. Ichigo watched with quite a bit of amusement as Kon batted at the cold stream of water and tried to climb up the slippery porcelain sink only to slide back down into the pool of water.

"Ichigo! What do you think you're doing to me? I'm gonna tell Neechan and she'll beat the living daylights out of you! You'll regret this!"

"Shut up, you whiny baby." Ichigo scowled. "You're always running to Rukia with your complaints. Can't you take your punishment like a man?"

"Punishment for what?" Kon screeched, by now completely drenched and unable to do anything about it as his stuffed limbs felt like lead weights.

Ichigo shut off the spigot and picked Kon up none too gently. He proceeded to wring water out of the bear despite Kon's irate yells. Roughly towel drying the stuffed animal, Ichigo returned to his room and set the bear down on his desk. Kon continued muttering curses which Ichigo ignored.

"Hey, take my place, I have to go somewhere," Ichigo said bluntly.

"What?" Kon gaped. "That's what this is about?"

Ichigo glared. "Yes, if you had woken up like a normal person I wouldn't have had to drown you in water."

"Well, how about shaking me awake instead?" Kon yelled. Impressive beads of tears rolled down his fuzzy cheeks. Ichigo wondered how the hell the bear was able to make tears without tear ducts.

"You want me to shake you now?" Ichigo replied to Kon's question.

Kon's shoulders drooped and Ichigo could almost see the bear's aura shrink down into a small tight knot.

"No…" Kon sighed in defeat. He just couldn't fight someone that much bigger and… well… uglier than him. Lord knew what the orange head was capable of when he was this irritated.

"All right," Kon conceded. "I'll take your place until you get back. I just have to sleep, right?"

Ichigo was already squeezing the Soul Pill out of Kon before the mod-soul's sentence could be completed. Now in full Shinigami attire and with the zanpaku-to at his hip, Ichigo quickly strode to the window, feeling that pressure in his chest that always preceded trouble.

"Yeah," Ichigo said, "and maybe go to school tomorrow if I don't get back in time."

Ichigo glared at him, and the mod-soul could see the thoughts running through Ichigo's head. Kon shuddered as his imagination went into overdrive.

"And behave. Don't do anything you'll regret later."

With that cheerfully issued threat hovering over him like a storm cloud, Kon sighed and dropped into the bed Ichigo had never laid in all night, pulling the covers up to his chin. Eyes heavy, he hoped that Rukia was all right. He knew without asking that there was nothing else, short of his family, which could have driven Ichigo into such a state of unease.

* * *

End Part IV

Author's Note: Sorry for the short chapter. ;; I'll try to make the next one a bit longer.


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